Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Irregular Stems

Complete Spanish Verb Course 7.2. Spanish Preterite: Irregular Stems Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Irregular Stems

In the preterite tense, some Spanish verbs have irregular stems that change from the regular patterns you learned with regular verbs. These irregular verbs not only have unique stems but also use specific endings that differ from the regular -ar, -er, and -ir preterite conjugations. Understanding these irregularities is essential for mastering the past tense in Spanish.

Irregular Stem Changes and Conjugation

The following verbs have irregular stems in the preterite tense. These stems are used with a specific set of endings, regardless of whether the verb originally ends in -ar, -er, or -ir.

Endings for Irregular Stems in the Preterite:

These endings are different from the regular preterite endings. You will need to memorize these different endings:

- e

Nosotros

- imos

Tú

(Juana, Juan)

- iste

Vosotros

(informal Spain)

- isteis

Él/Ella/Ud.

(Sra./Dr. García)

- o

Ellos/Ellas/Uds.

- ieron

Here’s an example of the endings with Venir whose stem changes to vin-.

vine

I came

Nosotros

vinimos

we came

Tú

(Juana, Juan)

viniste

you came

Vosotros

(informal Spain)

vinisteis

you all came

Él/Ella/Ud.

(Sra./Dr. García)

vino

he/she/you came

Ellos/Ellas/Uds.

vinieron

they/you all came

The endings (above) are consistent across all the irregular stem-changing verbs in the preterite tense.

Irregular Stem Verbs in the Preterite

Here’s a list of common verbs with irregular stems in the preterite tense, along with their conjugated forms:

Andar (to walk) → anduv–

Yo anduve por el parque. (I walked through the park.)
Ellos anduvieron todo el día. (They walked all day.)

Caber (to fit) → cup–

Juana, tú no cupiste en el coche. (Juana, you didn’t fit in the car.)
El libro no cupo en la mochila. (The book didn’t fit in the backpack.)

Estar (to be) → estuv–

Ella estuvo en casa todo el día. (She was at home all day.)
Nosotros estuvimos en la fiesta anoche. (We were at the party last night.)

Haber (to have, auxiliary) → hub–

Hubo un accidente en la carretera. (There was an accident on the highway.)
No hubo tiempo para hablar. (There wasn’t time to talk.)

Poder (to be able to) → pud–

Yo no pude terminar la tarea. (I couldn’t finish the homework.)
Ellos no pudieron venir a la reunión. (They couldn’t come to the meeting.)

Poner (to put/place) → pus–

Juan, tú pusiste la mesa anoche. (Juan, you set the table last night.)
Nosotros pusimos los libros en la estantería. (We put the books on the shelf.)

Saber (to know, to find out) → sup–

Ella supo la verdad ayer. (She found out the truth yesterday.)
Sra. García, Ud. supisteis la respuesta. (Sra. García, youl knew the answer.)

Querer (to want) → quis–

Yo quise ir al cine. (I wanted to go to the movies.)
Ella quiso hablar contigo. (She wanted to talk to you.)

Venir (to come) → vin–

Nosotros vinimos temprano a la clase. (We came to class early.)
Él vino solo a la fiesta. (He came to the party alone.)

Tener (to have) → tuv–

Yo tuve una reunión importante esta mañana. (I had an important meeting this morning.)
María tuvo que trabajar el fin de semana. (María had to work over the weekend.)

Hacer (to do/make) → hic– (with a special note below)

Yo hice la cena anoche. (I made dinner last night.)
Él hizo un pastel para la fiesta. (He made a cake for the party.)

Special Note on Hacer

Hacer (to do/make) is a special verb with an irregular stem in the preterite (hic-). It has a unique spelling change in the third person singular form (él, ella, usted) where the “c” changes to “z” to maintain proper pronunciation:

hice

I made

Nosotros

hicimos

we made

Tú

(Juana, Juan)

hiciste

you made

Vosotros

(informal Spain)

hicisteis

you all made

Él/Ella/Ud.

(Sra./Dr. García)

hizo

he/she/you made

Ellos/Ellas/Uds.

hicieron

they/you all made

Yo hice la cena. (I made dinner.)
Él hizo su tarea. (He did his homework.)

Conclusion

Learning the preterite forms of irregular stem-changing verbs is important for communicating effectively about past events in Spanish. These verbs often appear in everyday conversation, so mastering their unique conjugations will help you express yourself more clearly and accurately. Keep practicing these irregular forms to build your confidence and fluency!

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